Couples in remarriages with stepchildren are a significant portion of the marriage population and have unique educational needs regarding aspects of couple functioning within the context of stepfamily development. From a review of the literature, we examine current curricula focused on these couples. Information is offered on implementation issues…

Governmental efforts to strengthen marriage through a variety of approaches have become increasingly common in the last decade. Societal trends related to family formation, marriage, and divorce have shaped interest in marriage and its stability as a social institution. The public sector has targeted efforts at key stages in the life history of…

Weak and counterintuitive findings linking couples' interactional processes to marital outcomes have prompted new lines of research on how marriages change. Recent findings reviewed here highlight the value of (a) expanding conceptions of marital interaction by considering how social support and positive affect moderate the effects of…

We investigate the effects of non-family experiences on marital relationships in a setting characterized by high levels of arranged marriage until recently. Drawing on theoretical frameworks for the study of families and social change, we argue that the expansion of opportunities for non-family experiences will increase the likelihood of marital…

This article examines union entrance among never-married young men, focusing on whether the importance of a man's being economically established to marry has decreased in this new era of cohabitation and working wives. The authors test this assumption by examining marriage and cohabitation as competing risks to see whether the importance of…

Our work contributes to research on variation in role-taking by investigating changes in perceptions of role-taking ability over time as a result of exposure to situations and activities typically associated with others; that is, we investigate how "walking in others' shoes" contributes to individuals' perceptions of role-taking ability. Using a…

This research utilizes longitudinal data from newly married couples to investigate change in perceptions of role-taking accuracy over time. It is suggested that when individuals feel they can understand their spouse's perspective, they will be more likely to be aware of how their behavior will affect the spouse; as a result, they will be more…

Research indicates that marriage has a large effect on reducing the risk of poverty and is associated with a higher probability of attaining affluence over the life course when compared with nonmarriage. Using data from the American Dream Demonstration (N = 2,364), this study compares savings performances of married and unmarried low-income…

This study examines why low-income, unmarried parents who say that they plan to marry at the time their child is born do not follow through on their plans. We use data from a nationally representative birth cohort survey--the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study (N=3,710)--combined with data from an embedded qualitative study--Time, Love,…

The initial goals of IAMFC included conducting and fostering programs of education in the field of family counseling, and promoting and conducting programs of research in the field of marriage and family counseling (International Association of Marriage and Family Counselors, 1990). The goal of fostering program development shows signs of success,…

This article provides a synopsis of the theoretical and empirical literature describing the effects of graduate study on marital satisfaction. These findings offer implications for psychoeducational and responsive interventions for family counselors working with this population.

This article discusses the case of Wang Ruiliang. Ms. Huang filed a case against Wang Jun, alleging that he had defrauded her. Ms. Huang met a man named Wang Jun in April 2002 through a certain matrimonial agency. Before they had been together for very long, Wang Jun asked to borrow money from Ms. Huang, claiming that he was having difficulties in…

Deafness affects many social interactions. The impact of deafness depends on several factors, e.g., the type of social environment in terms of the particular Deaf community a person lives in. The authors recorded the birthrate and the proportions of married and divorced people among deaf people in two Swedish counties: Narke, which had a strong…

This article addresses cultural adaptation of Western-Palestinian intermarried couples. Using in-depth interviews, information was gathered from 16 participants, 7 Western women and 9 Palestinian men, living in Palestinian cities in the West Bank. Adaptation strategies are typified by the extent to which each spouse embraces the partner's culture.…

Individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) present unique needs regarding sexuality education. While the topic of sexuality has received increased attention in the fields of intellectual and developmental disabilities generally, less consideration has focused on the unique needs of individuals with ASD specifically. This paper presents one…